Mistake

A word which has been horribly abused in recent times. Recently, here in Atlanta, the news has been buzzing with the story of the Tri-State Crematory. Apparently, rather than going through the nasty expense of actually cremating people's loved ones, this guy has been sending people home with urns full of wood chips, wood ash, and other refuse and dumping the bodies in the back of the building.

Now, how does this relate to the node title, you ask? On the way out of the court house, the family of the owner was accosted with questions. An older man who was, I think the accused's uncle, said something to the effect of "we still support him, we've all made mistakes". Mistakes. Walking on ice is a mistake, accidentally sending someone home with the wrong ashes is a mistake. I could even extend mistake to falling prey to a foul inclination and lying about something to protect yourself as a mistake, if it is truly done impetuously. Dumping a few hundred bodies in tool sheds, shallow graves, and a lake is not a mistake, it's evil, pure and simple. The damage done to the families, both those of the deceased, and his own, is incalculable. The damage done to the industry in which he worked is immense, at least here in Georgia.

Time and time again, I hear people, when accused of amazing feats of wrongdoing, saying they made a mistake. Maybe we need to pass a law against such an egregious abuse of the English language.